Married Couples Are Happier With Kids

Has Parenthood Brought You Closer Together?

Magical as they are, the first few weeks of parenting are no cake walk. They are wonderful and full of life changing moments but the shift from couplehood to parent life is drastic and a never-ending learning process. For many moms and dads, the addition of a new family member takes a toll on the romance, making it tough to maintain the closeness in the relationship. Others are finding quite the opposite effect. And by others, I mean married parents. According to a new study, children boost happiness for married parents. Unmarried parents? They don't fare as well. The research found:

Evidence suggests that couples who are married are "ready" to have children where those who are not, may not have been prepared for the lifestyle change. Are you and your partner happier since becoming parents? And, are you married?

Mme Hart, I'm not a parent yet (but wanting to work on that), and I already have the fear that my husband will be more of the "cool uncle" than a father. He thinks he is already the "cool uncle" to his 2 and 3 month old nieces.

Marriage is hard work, and when we first had our son, I don't think I was willing to acknowledge HOW much being a mother changed who I was as a person. We drifted apart for awhile, but we did eventually hit the brakes and worked hard to reconnect. Now, we're as close as ever and expecting baby #2!

100% yes. And yes, we are married, although we were not before we found out we pregnant with our first (we have two). We found out we were pregnant with her a week before our wedding (the night before my bachelorette party, naturally), but that probably just counts as married, I'm guessing.